


The Highs and Lows of Racing

by ZDcookie_996



Series: Harvey Leclerc-Verstappen [3]
Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Anthoine Hubert's Death is mentioned, Charles' First F1 win, Charles' first time away from Harvey, Crying, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Monza 2019, Spa 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:26:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26937352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZDcookie_996/pseuds/ZDcookie_996
Summary: Charles experiences highs and lows in his first race back after the birth of his son.
Relationships: Charles Leclerc/Max Verstappen
Series: Harvey Leclerc-Verstappen [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1813042
Kudos: 42





	1. Return to Spa

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! Here is another installment to this series which will have 2 chapters: chapter 1 will focus on Spa whereas chapter 2 will focus on Monza. I wanted to write about Charles' first race back after the birth of his son which storywise is Spa where Harvey is 3 months old and is being looked after by his grandmother. There are mentions of Anthoine Hubert's death so word of warning there is a lot of crying in this first chapter and my thoughts on the comforting between Charles and Pierre. The next chapter will focus on Monza, I didn't know how long the story would be so I decided to just split it up. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and please leave any prompts in the comments!

Charles was trying to distract himself from thinking about when he would have to leave Harvey. He was due to return to racing and the first race back after the summer break was Spa in Belgium. Whilst Charles would normally be excited to get back to racing, this would be the first time he would be leaving Harvey as he had been the one who had stayed with him as Max went racing. The Dutchman had been away for a few races himself after Harvey had been born but he still found it difficult leaving his son and boyfriend. He was aware that Charles would find it difficult to leave as he had done too. 

When Charles was in the gym, it just reminded him that he was training ahead of his first race and when he was on the phone with Mattia or when he went to Maranello for the day to have meetings with his team, it just reminded him about his return to racing. He hoped that when he was actually busy, he wouldn’t think about his son as much and even though it sounded horrible, he knew he would have to keep his mind busy. 

Charles’ mum, Pascale, was going to be looking after Harvey whilst his parents were in Spa and Monza although they would be coming home for a few days before heading off to Italy. She had already promised that she would facetime when she could and would let Harvey watch the race. 

The day Charles and Max were due to leave, Charles had been training in the morning so he could spend as much time with Harvey before they had to leave. That meant Max got landed with packing everything. As it got later in the day and Pascale arrived, Charles was getting more and more nervous about leaving him. He hadn’t been away from Harvey for even one night and Max had told him he could’ve stayed with his mum for even one night to test it out but he had refused. He was starting to regret it as he didn’t want to leave his son. He was holding Harvey in his arms, his son close to falling asleep and Max had put the suitcases by the front door. Charles ran a hand up and down Harvey’s back and shushed his son gently when there was the sound of a car horn from outside. Max sighed as he looked over at his boyfriend. 

“Charles, we have to get going.” He said sadly.

His boyfriend looked up at him and sighed. He gently kissed Harvey's head before whispering in his ear:

“Papa and daddy love you so much baby. We’re both going to miss you.” 

Charles gently passed Harvey over to Max before making his way over to his mum to pull her in for a hug.

“Thank you for looking after him mum.” He said kindly.

Pascale tightened her grip on her son before she pulled back to look at him. 

“Nonsense, anything for you and Max.” She replied softly.

Charles gave her a small smile before they both looked over at Max who had Harvey cuddled against his chest, he too seemed reluctant to leave his son. Eventually, he kissed Harvey’s head and passed him carefully into Pascale’s arms. The baby made a small whine and Charles felt his heart break as Pascale kissed her grandson’s forehead. The two drivers said their final goodbyes and waved before grabbing their suitcases and headed out the door to go to the airport. It was when the door closed that Harvey began to whimper at the absence of his parents and so Pascale kissed his forehead again then decided it was bedtime for the little one. 

As Charles sat in the plane across from Max, he kept on looking at his phone, going through all the photos he had of Harvey. He had no idea how he was going to get through this weekend. He heard Max sigh and he frowned as he looked over at him. Max lifted an arm which was a hint for Charles to move so the Monegasque got out of his seat and sat beside his boyfriend who wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

“You know he will be fine with your mum.” Max told him firmly.

Charles sighed.

“I know, it’s just the first time I’ve been away from him.” He said sadly.

“It’s not easy but the time will pass quickly.” Max told him. 

Charles could only hope.

Thursday was media day in the paddock and everyone wanted a piece of Charles as it was his first race back since giving birth. Max was popular too given that his boyfriend was back in the paddock so thankfully media day was a success in keeping them both busy. They got together to facetime Pascale before they left the hotel in the morning and at night when they returned. Both Pascale and Max rolled their eyes at Charles who was constantly asking if Harvey was alright without them and if he was feeding alright.

“Charles, darling. Everything is fine here. Harvey is wonderful. Now please just worry about racing and leave everything to me.” Pascale had said firmly.

Charles had just sighed in relief that his son was alright although his mum hadn’t included the little detail of Harvey’s episode after his parents had left. 

The next morning, they facetimed Pascale again at Charles’ insistence. He couldn’t get enough of Harvey’s cooing and cute little face but he also kept on interrogating his mum about his baby.

“Charles, honestly aren’t you busy?” Pascale asked in amusement. 

Her son frowned.

“We’re not at the paddock yet.” He said.

“It’s just the fact that this is the third time you’ve facetimed. You know I did say I would call if there was an emergency.” Said Pascale. 

“I know, it’s just I miss him.” Said Charles softly.

Pascale sighed and shook her head fondly as she held onto Harvey.

“Your papa is being silly, baby.” She teased.

Charles glared at his mum then at Max who laughed. The glare fell from his face as Harvey let out a little noise and reached out to the phone in Pascale’s hand. His parents smiled at him. 

First and second practice was a 1-2 for Ferrari with Seb leading the first practice then Charles leading the second. It led to the question of whether Mercedes could actually get pole on Saturday or if Ferrari would ruin their fun. Charles was happy with his performance on Friday as he spoke to the media who were excited about Ferrari’s form. 

As Saturday arrived, it seemed clear that Ferrari were going to be in contention for pole, it was just a question of which driver. 

Pascale anticipated the morning facetime call and wished both Max and Charles luck for qualifying. Max had even joked that Charles would without a doubt achieve pole so they should just start the race already. 

Charles was on a high as he did achieve pole! He knew it would silence some of his critics who had questioned whether he was in the right mindset to be racing. Some people had been excited about his return to Formula 1 and he was aware of people who thought it was unfair he had taken so much time off and then there were others who questioned his quick return. Most of his family had told him he couldn’t please everyone and that he should do what was best for him and his family. The young Monegasque was aware of his boyfriend’s qualifying position and he knew he would be disappointed with the result given it was a home grand prix with Sophie being Dutch. 

Unfortunately, Charles wasn’t able to celebrate his pole position in the way he would’ve liked. His good friend, Anthoine Hubert, crashed in the Formula 2 Feature race which had taken place after the Formula 1 qualifying. Charles had not long been in debrief when he heard and was given permission to go and see Pierre. He raced to the Toro Rosso hospitality where he found the Frenchman pacing as the team had not long finished their debrief, having cut it short as they heard the news. Pierre looked up at Charles, tears in their eyes.

“Did you hear?” Charles asked breathlessly.

Pierre nodded.

“I can’t believe this has happened.” Said Charles, sniffling.

His friend shook his head then raced towards Charles, wrapping his arms around him. Charles closed his eyes and he wrapped his arms around Pierre. They stood like that for a minute before they pulled apart. 

“I have to get back to the team.” Said Charles regretfully.

Pierre nodded in understanding.

“Come and find me later.” He said quietly.

Charles nodded and headed towards the door before Pierre called out his name.

“Congrats on pole. You deserve it.” He said softly.

Charles smiled softly at him and nodded before he made his way back to his team’s motorhome. 

When the news broke out that Anthoine had died, Charles found himself standing in front of Max’s hotel room door, frantically pounding on it. They were both staying with their trainers, having decided to keep to the norm of separating their private lives when they were out racing and always made sure to see each other in the paddock. Eventually, Max opened the door and his heart broke when he saw the look on Charles’ face. He quickly pulled his boyfriend into the room as the door closed behind them. He wrapped his arms around the young driver as he sobbed into his chest. Max could do nothing apart from run his hand up and down Charles’ back and murmur into his ear that he was there. When Charles pulled back slightly to look at Max, his eyes were all red and he let his boyfriend run his thumb underneath his eyes to get rid of the tears. 

“I’m so sorry.” Max apologised.

Charles sniffed and slumped his head against Max’s shoulder.

“I need to go and see Pierre.” Said Charles softly.

He could feel Max nodding his head so he lifted it to look at the Dutchman.

“You know I love you right?” Max asked quietly.

Charles smiled softly.

“I love you too, so much.” He murmured.

Max pulled him in for a kiss then kissed his forehead as Charles made his way towards the door and headed for Pierre’s room. 

Pierre was a mess. He sobbed the minute he saw Charles standing outside his door and he continued to sob in his best friend’s chest for the better part of half an hour. When Pierre stopped crying, he had tired himself out and Charles knew he would have to leave soon so they could both get to bed. The Frenchman began to talk about Anthoine and both friends were soon sharing their memories of the friend who had been taken far too soon. They both called it a night but before Charles could leave, Pierre turned to look at him seriously.

“I want you to promise me something.” Pierre said firmly.

Charles frowned.

“What is it?” He asked nervously.

“Promise you’ll win the race for Anthoine. Race for him, Charles. Please win for him.” Replied Pierre, softly.

Charles couldn’t promise him but he looked at his friend with a determined look on his face. He went back to Max’s room so they could facetime Pascale even though they knew Harvey would be in bed but Charles wanted to see him mum. She was practically in tears when she picked up and Max cuddled Charles close to him as Charles closed his eyes in pain.

“You know I don’t want you to race tomorrow, baby, but I know you’ll want to race for Anthoine so think of him. Race for Anthoine, Charles.” 

Max kept his arms around Charles even after they ended the call with Pascale. He kissed his temple and tightened his grip. They both knew it was getting late and when they pulled apart, Max leaned closer to whisper in Charles’ ear. 

“Do it for him, baby.” 

Most of the drivers had the same mindset. They didn’t want to drive after what had happened to Anthoine but at the same time, they wanted to drive for him. It was so difficult for Charles as he tried to focus on the race. They had a minute silence ahead of the formula 3 race and then again before the start of the formula 1 race. He found it difficult facing Anthoine’s mother who wrapped her arms around him. As he stepped into the car, he knew he had to race for Anthoine, he was going to do it for him.

He had won. He had won! 

Charles looked up to the sky as he dedicated his race win to Anthoine. He couldn’t believe it. His first win in Formula 1 and he was dedicating his win to a friend who had been taken, who should’ve been racing to get to the top of his career. Charles could only hope that his memories of Anthoine would remain with him forever. He would tell Harvey stories about his friend. He had never felt so devastated in his life when he heard the news of Anthoine’s passing. His friend had never gotten the chance to meet Harvey. If Charles had known that something like this was going to happen, he would’ve put in more of an effort to have visited Anthoine or insist his friend visit. Racing was in the way and Charles hadn’t wanted to travel with Harvey as he was only a baby but he couldn’t believe that his son would never get to meet Anthoine. 

He found it surreal as people were congratulating him and yet there was still sadness surrounding the win as his friend had died. Pierre was in tears as he congratulated him. Max was nearly in tears too. Charles had snuck a moment with him after the press conference. He was upset for his boyfriend who had retired from the race but the Dutchman was happy for him. 

“I’m so proud of you.” Max had whispered.

Charles blinked back tears as Max tightened his grip on him. They kissed slowly and separated as Charles knew he had to get to the media pen. 

When the interviews were over and debrief was finished, Charles was allowed to celebrate with his friends who had come to the race. Charles had tried to put on a brave face and celebrate but his heart wasn’t in it. He had already had an argument with Mattia who wanted him at Maranello the next day but Charles wanted to go home and see Harvey so his team principal let him off, which he was thankful for. Max wasn’t entirely surprised when Charles left the celebrations early to come to his room. They shared kisses and cuddled into one another. 

“First thing tomorrow, we’ll be on the plane back home to see our boy.” Max murmured in his ear.

Charles smiled sleepily as Max cuddled into his back.

“Can’t wait.” He replied, excitedly.

The couple fell into a deep sleep and it wasn’t long before they were on the plane heading home. Max literally had to sit on Charles the entire flight to stop him jumping about with excitement. He then held his hand the entire way home in the car back to Monaco. The Dutchman was practically left on his own to grab all the luggage out of the car as Charles raced to the front door and into the apartment. He pouted when he saw Harvey in his mum’s arms, the baby’s back resting against Pascale’s chest with her arms holding him firmly.

“Look, Harvey. It’s papa.” Murmured Pascale.

Harvey let out a little smile and Charles could feel his eyes filling with tears as he moved closer to pick up his son. The baby rested his head on Charles’ shoulder. Pascale smiled at the sight of her grandson back in his papa’s arms and she didn’t mind that she was being ignored as Charles focused on the three month old baby in his arms. There was a clatter behind them as Max put down the two suitcases.

“It’s fine, babe. I’ll just get all of your luggage too.” He said sarcastically.

Charles stuck his tongue out at him as Pascale huffed.

“Max, I’ll give you a hand.” She said helpfully.

The Dutchman waved a hand as he turned to walk out the door again. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry. I just need to make one more trip.” He insisted.

Pascale shook her head fondly as Charles continued to cuddle Harvey into his chest. When Max eventually returned, he had managed to put two backpacks on his back whilst carrying Charles’ trophy and the bag containing the pirelli pole position award. He let out a deep breath as he dumped everything on the floor apart from Charles’ winning trophy. Max smiled as he made his way over to Charles and lifted up the trophy so their son could see it.

“Look at papa’s trophy, H. Papa won the race.” Max cooed.

Harvey moved a hand and placed it on the trophy as he was fascinated with the shiny object. Max chuckled and Charles kissed Harvey’s forehead before Max did the same then kissed Charles’ temple. The baby whined when Max moved away so he could greet Pascale who laughed gently and let Max place a kiss on her cheek.

“See Charles, Max has better manners than you but then your attention was on your son so I’ll let you off.” Pascale teased as she tapped her cheek.

Charles rolled his eyes before he made his way over to his mum to kiss her on the cheek. Max smiled.

“This is why I’m the favourite.” He joked.

Charles scoffed and Max would have hit him but Charles was still holding Harvey so he decided against it. Max put the trophy down and held out his arms and Charles gently passed their son over. He then wrapped his arms around his mum who kissed him on the temple.

“Well done, darling. I’m so proud of you. As Anthoine would be too.” Whispered Pascale.

Charles rested his head on his mum’s shoulder for a minute before he shifted to look over at his boyfriend and son. Max was holding Harvey against his chest and was busy talking to him as he pointed to Charles’ trophy. Charles smiled as Harvey kept looking up at Max and then back to the trophy every so often. 

He was happy that he was going to have time with Harvey before he would be off again, this time to Italy. As he was surrounded by his family, it made him realise that he had to treasure the time he had with them as he had now come to know that you couldn’t take life for granted.


	2. Win Win Win

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charles returns to his second race as he experiences the high of winning in a Ferrari car at Monza.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Here is the second chapter which features Charles and Max at Monza. I should point out that when Charles and Pierre are chatting ahead of the press conference, they are speaking in French but I have clearly written it in English. I want to apologise for not discussing Charles' brothers who were at the race but the focus was mainly on both Charles and Max. Also, I had to go back through the highlights of everything on Youtube because I wanted to do a quick run through of every session as I feel like I didn't do that in the first chapter. I feel like this chapter is perhaps a bit more rushed although I had been planning on it being the shorter chapter out of the two. I hope you all enjoy and please leave any prompts you may have!

Charles knew it was going to be difficult leaving Harvey again but he didn’t anticipate how difficult even though he had been to Spa already. Max didn’t really want to admit that he was starting to get used to it because he didn’t want to upset Charles but he still missed being away from his son. The couple were able to spend a few days with their baby before they were due to go to Monza and because it was Ferrari’s home grand prix, Charles had to be there for the Thursday morning. Max was currently sitting with Harvey cuddled into his chest as they sat in the living room on Wednesday afternoon before he was due to leave with Charles that night. He insisted that Charles needed to do the packing since he had been left to do everything so Charles could spend extra time with Harvey. In all fairness, there wasn’t really much to pack and he left a new pile of clothes on the bed so his boyfriend didn’t have to go through their wardrobe. When Charles was finished, he came through and slumped down on the couch beside Max.

“I don’t want to go.” He whined.

Max snorted.

“One more race then we have two weeks until Singapore.” He said.

Charles sighed and gently held one of Harvey’s hands as he rested his head on Max’s shoulder. 

It wasn’t long before they were preparing Harvey’s dinner and feeding him. Charles tried not to watch the clock as he knew his uncle would be arriving soon. He would be looking after baby Harvey to give Charles’ mum a break after Spa. Jos hadn’t been in touch with Max at all after he revealed that he and Charles had a baby boy. Sandy was trying to keep the peace but Max had decided that if his father didn’t want to see Harvey, he wasn’t going to force him to. It meant that they had to rely on Charles’ family to look after their son. Victoria wasn’t ready to look after a baby overnight, never mind for a few days so they asked Charles’ uncle, Thierry to look after him. 

The doorbell rang just as Charles had finished getting Harvey into his night onesie. He cuddled him close as Max went to the door. The Dutchman was greeted by Thierry, Stephanie, Jules and Andrea. He let them into the apartment and told Thierry and Stephanie about Harvey’s routine and where everything was because they had agreed to stay in the apartment so that the baby would be settled. Charles felt guilty that he didn’t immediately go and greet his family but he wanted a moment with Harvey by himself. Eventually, he kissed his son on the head and left the room as he knew he was going to have to head to the airport soon anyway. He smiled when he made eye contact with his uncle and everyone said hello to him. Harvey was passed over to Max so he could have one final cuddle as Charles got the suitcases by the door. 

When a car horn sounded outside, Max and Charles knew their ride was waiting. Charles quickly kissed Harvey on the forehead.

“I’m sorry we’re going away, bubba. We’ll see you at the weekend.” He cooed.

Max kissed Harvey’s forehead as well before he gently passed him over to Stephanie who shushed him gently when the baby let out a little murmur. Charles literally had to be dragged to the car by Max. The young Monegasque looked longingly back at the apartment as Max grabbed his hand once they were in the car and set off towards the airport. 

Thierry and Stephanie decided that they weren’t going to mention to either Max or Charles how long exactly it took to calm Harvey down as he screamed the place down when his parents left. 

Charles and Max didn’t bother to facetime when they arrived in Italy seeing as Harvey would be asleep so they just messaged their families such as Charles’ mum, Charles’ uncle and Max’s mum, Sophie. She had declined to look after Harvey due to the fact that she wanted to come and see her son racing but she promised to look after him at a race weekend in the future. Charles’ brothers were also going to be there for the race too. 

Charles was excited because this was his first race with Ferrari at their home grand prix and he loved Italy. There was seemingly a lot of buzz in the paddock already about the possibility of him winning here because of Spa and it was only Thursday. There was a lot planned in terms of media commitments because he was a Ferrari driver but it was good as he could still be focused on his job. He was happy to see that Pierre would be in the press conference. Charles managed to speak to Pierre ahead of the press conference as they waited for the other drivers to arrive. 

“Hey, how are you?” Charles asked his friend after they had greeted one another.

“I’m glad we’re away from Spa, to be honest.” Pierre replied sadly.

Charles sighed. He knew it was very difficult for Pierre as he was the closest to Anthoine out of the two of them and it had been tough racing the day after the incident. 

“How’s Harvey?” Pierre asked as he smiled thinking about his godson.

Charles was aware of the deliberate change in topic but accepted it as he never got tired of talking about his son. He smiled as he started to tell Pierre about what they had been up to in the days since the last race.

“I can’t believe he’s three months already.” Pierre exclaimed.

“Honestly it’s unbelievable.” Charles agreed with him. 

Charles pulled his phone out of his pocket and showed the Frenchman pictures he had yet to see of the baby. Pierre cooed and laughed at them.

“Oh, he’s so cute.”

Charles chuckled.

“You and Cate should stay some time, well maybe not stay overnight, you’d never get any sleep.” He joked.

Pierre laughed.

I’m so glad she’s here, Charles.” He said softly.

Charles gave his friend a gentle smile. He knew himself that it had been helpful having Max in Spa, comforting him after he had heard and just being there. He knew that Cate was probably wanting to support Pierre, especially after last weekend. 

The two drivers were interrupted as it was time for the press conference to start.

Charles was glad to get back to the hotel after he was finished in the paddock. Whilst it was nice to sit with journalists and talk about different things other than racing, some people would ask personal questions and sometimes the same questions would be repeated. He headed to Max’s room so they could facetime his uncle before Harvey went to bed. Charles literally squealed at the sight of his son in his onesie. He really wanted a hug but he was going to have to wait. Max asked how Harvey was getting on before Charles exploded with questions and their minds were put at ease because Harvey was behaving himself. Then again, he was only three months old. Thierry asked how the media had been given there was now a high expectation for Ferrari to win more races and seeing as it was Ferrari’s home race, there was pressure to do well. Charles just wanted to go and race, he didn’t mind being asked questions but he couldn’t wait to get in the car. When Harvey began to whine, Charles and Max waved goodbye and Thierry ended the call. Max hugged Charles against his chest for a moment before he kissed his boyfriend as the young Monegasque wanted to have an early night. 

Friday was an interesting day to say the least. It rained during first practice and it was anticipated that it would rain throughout the weekend. That meant the drivers had to focus on the changing conditions, given the fact that it didn’t usually tend to rain in Monza all the time. The track was slightly drier for second practice and so it made things a bit easier in comparison to the first practice where there had been a red flag early on. Charles was the fastest driver in both sessions but then again it was a Ferrari one-two so Saturday’s qualifying was going to be interesting. 

Again, Charles found himself in Max’s room that night to facetime home. Sophie had asked to join them so that she could see Harvey too. Charles had greeted her earlier on in the paddock. He loved having her around and it was great that she was there to support him as well as Max. It was different spending time with her without having Victoria there as well. The two women would travel to races together but then sometimes Victoria went with Jos but he hadn’t been to many races this year, probably because of Charles. Sophie never brought him up in conversation mainly because she didn’t want to upset Max so apart from when she had spoken to Charles about Jos right after Harvey had been born, Jos was avoided. 

Charles didn’t stay long after the call had ended as both he and Max wanted to get a good night’s rest ahead of qualifying the next day. 

Thankfully, the weather was better on Saturday than it had been on Friday. Charles ended final practice in 4th position whilst his teammate was first. He was aware that Max, Pierre and Lando would start at the back of the grid for the race as they had received engine penalties. It would mean they would have to fight from a long way back but when Max had told Charles about it, he was ready for the fight. 

There was concern for Max and for Red Bull as the car lost power during the first part of qualifying. Whilst they knew that Max would be starting near the back of the grid anyway because he had a new power unit, it was still a concern to see the car slowing down. 

The final part of qualifying was chaotic. Charles had been thinking that Max probably would’ve been ranting on the radio about it. There was a red flag which was brought out by Kimi. It was when qualifying had been restarted, that things kicked off. Less than two minutes, that’s all that was left on the clock. For the teams it was highly stressful but not so much for the fans who thought the chaos was entertaining. Well, some enjoyed it at least. 

The situation somewhat benefitted Charles who ended up on pole but primarily because he was already in pole position when Kimi went off the track and caused the red flag. Carlos Sainz who was the only one to get a lap in and it technically didn’t improve his position. Most of the drivers would be hoping not to have another qualifying session like that again in the future. 

Charles was relieved to be in pole position. It meant that Ferrari would have a fighting chance at getting the win but they had to stay focused. As much as the car suited the track, they hadn’t won yet. 

That night as they sat in Max’s room, cuddled up whilst facetiming home, Charles felt like he was on another planet having achieved two poles in a row. His family were very happy for him and they were supporting Max as well.

“You’ll do great tomorrow, Max.” Thierry encouraged him.

The Dutchman smiled.

“We have a fight on our hands.” He teased.

The two drivers were counting down the days until they saw Harvey. He was cuddled up in Stephanie’s lap and Charles was so glad that Singapore was in two weeks time. 

When the two drivers woke up the next morning, they were determined to go out and fight. Max knew it was going to be a huge battle starting at the back of the grid but it was going to happen at some point. Charles was aware of the battle he was going to have with the two Mercedes drivers who were starting alongside him and on the next row beside his teammate, Seb. 

Charles spent most of the race battling with Lewis which was exciting and daunting both once because he just wanted to be in front. He was unaware of a disaster of a race his teammate was having and the team decided not to tell him seeing as Seb had been given a penalty and probably wouldn’t be anywhere near the podium. 

Max’s race didn’t start well as he had to change his front wing and nose of his car fairly quickly after he went down the escape road on the first lap. The team were aware that the podium was going to be off the cards as Ferrari and Mercedes had been dominating the track. Max was hoping for some points at least. 

As it got close to the end of the race, Lewis was beginning to struggle with his tyres. He was struggling so much as he tried to put the pressure on Charles that he went off the track and was passed by his own teammate. 

Charles ended up battling with Valtteri for the win and he tried not to think about how much it would hurt if he was beaten by the Mercedes when he was so close to winning.

He was able to relax when he crossed the line. He did it! He had won! In a Ferrari car as well! He was so happy! 

It felt good to properly celebrate with his team. He had felt bad for celebrating in Spa after Anthoine as it had been his first race win but he hadn’t felt up to partying. Now it was different because it had been the first time a Ferrari driver had won their home grand prix in forever. Charles was so grateful to get a moment alone before the team’s debrief. He really wanted to go and visit Max. His boyfriend had finished in 8th place but at least he picked up some points. He sighed as he knew he would have to wait until later to see his boyfriend. He was too busy with his own thoughts to notice his boyfriend sneaking up behind him. It wasn’t until a pair of strong arms were wrapped around his waist that he realised someone else was in the room. Those strong arms lifted him off the ground and he let out a surprised shriek before he was placed down on the ground. He smiled as he turned and was met with a smiley Max. 

“Hey, champ.” Murmured Max.

The Dutchman pulled his boyfriend close and kissed him on the lips. Charles wrapped his arms around Max’s neck as he deepened the kiss. They pulled apart abruptly when there was a cough behind them. Charles blushed when she saw Sophie standing in the doorway.

“Sorry to ruin the moment, boys, but I want to congratulate the race winner.” She teased. 

Max rolled his eyes and reluctantly moved away from Charles so his mum could hug his boyfriend. Unfortunately, the hug didn’t last long as Andrea stopped by the doorway.

“Charles, you have debrief shortly.” He reminded the young driver. 

He left and Charles pulled away from Sophie and apologised for having to go and leave them.

“It’s fine, I’ve got to go to debrief anyway.” Max stated.

Max gave Charles one last kiss before he and his mum left the Ferrari motorhome and headed back to Red Bull. 

Charles was finally able to properly relax with the team and celebrate once debrief was over. It was nice to spend time with everyone after they had worked so hard over the past two weekends. His brothers were also there so they were able to join him to celebrate. He ended up back in the hotel outside Max’s room around midnight as they were staying overnight before heading home the next day. He grinned at his boyfriend when he opened the door for him. 

“Hey there.” 

Charles laughed and let out a squeal when he was pulled into the room for a different kind of celebration. 

He was glad the next morning that he had been able to facetime home quickly before he went out to the media pen as he had gotten to bed late. It had become a habit of facetiming home before Harvey went to bed although he had been messaging his uncle whenever he could to make sure his son was alright. He tried not to be too offended when he didn’t get an answer straight away but then again he knew his uncle would be busy entertaining his cousins too. Max had been able to facetime after debrief as Charles was celebrating with his team. He wanted to spend as much time with his mum, even though it would’ve been nice to join in the celebrations, Max would’ve felt out of place. 

It wasn’t long before the couple were on the plane back home to Monaco. Mattia had wanted him in the factory in Maranello like he had done after Spa but Charles had promised to go the next day. He knew he should go and celebrate with everyone there but he wanted to see his son first. He was so grateful when Mattia gave him permission to go home. The two drivers were busy going through the pictures of Harvey on Charles’ that Stephanie had sent. It was nice to see pictures of their baby but then again, it reminded them of how much he was growing. 

Thankfully, the flight and the car ride home went by quickly although Max had grabbed Charles’ arm before he could make a run into the apartment. They managed to take all the luggage between them and they made their way into their home. Thierry greeted them in the hallway after they had dumped all their bags on the floor. He pulled Charles into a big hug before he let him go and hugged Max as well. It got Charles thinking about how much he loved it when his family interacted with his boyfriend given how he used to have a bit of a reputation. Max had matured and probably more so now because he was a parent but he was still young, they both were.

“Where’s Harvey?” Asked Charles, eagerly.

Thierry rolled his eyes.

“Everyone is watching Dumbo, we’ve been getting into the habit of watching films in the morning to keep the boys settled then we’ve gone out in the afternoon.” He said.

Charles made his way to the living room and smiled as he noticed Harvey sitting on Stephanie’s lap gazing up at the TV as he watched the film. One of his little cousin’s was sitting beside Stephanie holding Harvey’s hand whilst the other was sitting on the one seater chair playing on his phone. 

“Hey, guys. Look who’s home?” Thierry called out softly. 

Theirry and Max were now standing behind Charles. Both of Charles’ cousins looked up and greeted him before they excitedly jumped out of their seats to go and congratulate their cousin. As they got louder, the baby in Stephanie’s lap whined and their dad decided that they needed to quieten down.

“Boys, your cousin and Max have just gotten home, there will be plenty of time to talk. Go and sit back down, you’re upsetting Harvey.” Said Thierry, sternly. 

The boys apologised and went to sit back down. Charles shook his head fondly as he moved forward and took his son out of Stephanie’s arms when she held him up.

“Hello, bubba. Did you miss us?” He cooed.

The baby let out a little smile and Charles’ smile brightened at the sight.

“You’re so cute, Harvey.” He said softly.

Max moved forward and placed a kiss on the baby’s temple.

“Are you proud of papa, sunshine? Daddy has got some work to do, huh?” He asked, knowing he wouldn’t get an answer.

The baby lifted a hand in Max’s direction and he took it and held it gently. The two drivers eventually sat down and Charles felt more relaxed now that he had Harvey cuddled into his chest. He was so glad that he was going to be able to do this before the next race. 

Charles’ family stayed for a little while mainly so Charles’ cousins could interrogate the two drivers about the race. After a while, Stephanie told them off as they were not in a press conference. Max and Charles laughed. They didn’t mind as long as they got to spend time with their family, that was all that mattered.


End file.
